Stronger
by TheWitch'sDorothy
Summary: Glinda thinks on her life. Not really any pairing, some unrequited Gelphie.


**Dedicated to my favorite Glinda of all-time, Alli Mauzey, who taught me that Glinda is just as strong as Elphaba- maybe even stronger.**

* * *

Life is difficult.

It's amazing how often you can say that, yet how little it can be true. Certainly for me; I would always whine about how many tests we had or that my shoes didn't match my outfit. Life isn't fair, I would say while wearing that pout everyone at Shiz came to know. Then everyone would be at my beck and call, offering solutions and sympathy. What I didn't- or couldn't- realize was that my life wasn't difficult in the slightest. I've now come to realize that those who are the strongest among us are those who say that life isn't difficult, despite the numerous hardships they face every day. Those who put a smile on their faces and live through their days as though each one is a gift, those are the ones who are truly strong. Elphaba, Nessarose. They were the strongest people I've ever known.

You're probably wondering why I didn't include Fiyero in that. That's because he wasn't strong. Sweet, caring, and protective, yes, but strong, really truly strong? Not in the slightest. It's nothing personal really, because neither am I. But I'm learning to be.

When I was younger, I used to love Lurlinemas. The way the snow would fall in gentle, swirling eddies around my bedroom windows, the decorations in store windows, and of course, the presents. But the part that I loved the most was decorating the tree. My favorite ornament was a blown glass globe, swirling with hues of deep crimson, cream white, and gold. It would catch the light and shine in a way none of the other ornaments did. Momsie and Popsicle would always let me hang that ornament on the tree, an activity that I regarded to be the highlight of the season. But the last time I hung up the ornament, the Lurlinemas before I went to Shiz, it fell and shattered into hundreds of multicolored shards. I had been nearly inconsolable then, but now I regard it to be symbolic of my life afterwards. All that I'd thought of the world was shattered when I went to Shiz, forcing me to put my views back together in a different way. For example, I never dreamed I'd be rooming with a girl whose skin was green as sin. I never thought I'd become friends with her. And never in a million years did I think I'd fall in love with her.

It was unrequited, as such feelings often are. But that didn't stop me from trying my hardest to win her over. I would sit next to her, lay my head on her shoulder, and ask her opinion about the most trivial matters. I forced her to notice me. Each time I was near her, I silently begged her to touch me, kiss me, anything. It never happened and when she ran off with Fiyero, I gave up trying. There was no point anymore.

It didn't seem like there was a much of a point to anything anymore. My best friend loved my then-fiancé and ran off with him, before being melted by some farm girl from Kansas. As if that wasn't painful enough, house had crushed Nessarose, Boq had gotten turned into a Tin Man, and Fiyero had either been dead or dying somewhere in a cornfield. Out of our little group, I was the only one left. The thought nearly killed me; it kept me awake at night and haunted me during the day. There were times when I went to sleep, praying to any god that would listen that I wouldn't wake up in the morning. But I always did, day after torturous day. The worst part of it was the lies. The fake happiness that I was forced to project day after day, to pretend as though I couldn't be happier when all I wanted to do was break down and sob.

More than once, the thought of taking my own life had crossed my mind. How easy it would be, how with just a handful of pills all the pain would be over. But whenever I did, I thought of Elphaba. How she was undoubtedly watching me; they all were. Would I be able to face them in the afterlife, having not done all that I could with my life? For giving up when each of them had fought on until their deaths, even Fiyero. No, I decided, I wouldn't. So I held on and I held out. I began looking for reasons to go on and I found that there were more than I thought.

There were the people who cared about me. The cheering crowds of Oz, who for all their ignorance, genuinely cared for me. I would receive letters from all corners of the country, some asking for advice, others thanking for me all I had done. I replied to each and every one and I still do. It reminds me that people care, that they would miss me if I left. It made the thought of taking my life even more selfish and weak.

But there were the memories of Elphaba, Nessarose, and Fiyero. I would carry on, be strong, for them. If no one else, they deserved someone who remembered, someone who cared. So I went on, smiling and waving, knowing that somewhere they could see me and hopefully, they were proud.

As the new ruler of Oz, I set in place a new system. Each section of the country would have a representative, who would report back to me each month, when I would hold a meeting for all of them. They would tell me the state of things and I would decide what to do about it after consulting with everyone. The regents were well-chosen, elected by the citizens they controlled. From Winkie Country, it was the leader of the Arjiki Tribe; from Gillikin, a high-class lord who traveled all over the region making public appearances and keeping in touch with everyone, and from Munchkinland, a certain Tin Man. Boq was a well-loved and just regent, and I had grown to respect him. He was quiet and soft-spoken, but not afraid to speak his mind when need arose. He never spoke to me outside of our meetings though. I suppose he's still picking up and putting together his own pieces.

I never dreamed that this would be my future. But I've learned to be strong, to never let anyone define who I am. And now that I look at my past and towards my future, I couldn't be happier.

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"_Promise me you'll always remember you're stronger than you seem, braver than you believe, smarter than you think." –A.A. Milne_


End file.
